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| NC/TN State Line, June 16, 2018 |
After a free breakfast our shuttle driver, Leanne, arrived early at 8 am and drove us to back to Newfound Gap. The trail was crowded with weekend day hikers. We climbed the 1000 feet over Mt. Ambler and stopped a little further at Icewater spring shelter. Major Tom was having trouble with his new boots, he already had blisters on his heels. He treated them and we continued to Charlie's Bunion, a rock outcrop will great views. Unfortunately it was crowded with about 20 people so we continued without stopping. I do recommend the hike for day hikers but maybe go on a week day. We stopped for lunch at Bradley's View then continued over some very rough, rocky trail over Mts. Sequoyah and Chapman. We finally arrived at TriCorner Knob shelter which was full. Young Mike, Ray, several section hikers who we saw before our day off in Gatlinburg and an REI Adventure Group with 2 guides and 6 beginning backpackers. We tented near by. Ray was scaring the REI group with tales of wild mice causing them to try to hang their entire backpacks on the bear cables leaving no room for our food bags. Fortunately, some justice was served when two of the backpacks fell from a cable on to him. We made them leave one cable for us.
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| Scenic backcountry privy, June 16, 2018 |
Privies - privies also known as out houses in the Backcountry have an interesting twist out on the trail from the Smokies to Georgia. The Appalachian Trail Conference (ATC) has convinced the federal government to help fund the building and maintenance of privies and they must adhere to some of the government's regulations. So you hike several miles over rugged mountains to get to a shelter, then over an often difficult trail to get to the privies but when you arrive the privies have wheelchair accessibility including a ramp and first class bars.
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| Federally funded privy, June 16, 2018 |
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